M7S SMG

"The suppressed M7 -- tears through armor and turns bad guys into chum."

— Gunnery Sergeant Edward Buck, giving a run-down of the M7S in the Desperate Measures Video Documentary.

The M7S Submachine Gun^[1] or the Suppressed SMG, is a United Nations Space Command infantry weapon.

Design Details

A suppressor attachment located at the tip of the Halo 2-era SMG barrel.

The M7S is a variant of the M7 Caseless Submachine Gun, which fires 5 x 23mm M443 Caseless Full Metal Jacket ammunition. This variant features an external flash and SS/M 49 sound suppressor on the barrel along with a flashlight. Recoil from all but sustained fire is very controllable. Although the M7 submachine-gun is primarily issued to vehicle crews, it is also a favorite of commando teams in its sound suppressed version. Sustained automatic fire tends to cause the muzzle to “walk” upwards as recoil compounds. Submachine guns, while not accurate over long distances, are particularly effective in close quarters. Muzzle flash is significantly decreased, and firing the weapon gives a barely noticeable sound, increasing stealth applications for the M7S Submachine Gun and increasing accuracy from decreased recoil making the weapon more efficient at medium-long range. It is a good weapon for stealth and hit-and-run missions.

Changes from Standard M7

The M7S is equipped with a sound suppressor.
The M7S is also equipped with a red dot "reflex" sight, making it more effective in dark areas, night and in general close quarters combat.
A flashlight is attached under the suppressor off to the bottom left side of the barrel, similar to the Shotgun.
The magazine capacity has been reduced from 60 rounds to 48. ^[2]
Its smart-link scope allows it to zoom in and display the image on the user's HUD, and not the reflex sight contrary to popular belief.

Trivia

Miscellaneous

This is the signature weapon of the protagonist of Halo 3: ODST, The Rookie.^[3]
This is the starting weapon in most Firefight levels except for Windward, where you start with a Sniper Rifle instead.
In the handbook for ODST, it is stated that the M7S is "a sound-suppressed variant of the M7 rifle". This is most likely a careless mistake, as the regular M7/Caseless Submachine Gun is not a rifle. On the other hand, the "rifle" designation could be pointing towards the fact that the M7 SMG has a rifled barrel, as in the case of the modern-day Carl Gustav Recoilless Rifle, which is not a conventional rifle, but an anti-tank weapon.

Appearances

The M7S can also be seen in the gallery section of the Halo Graphic Novel.^[4]
In Halo: First Strike the Master Chief carries two M7S SMGs.^[5] Similarly, in Halo: Contact Harvest, Staff Sergeant Avery Johnson and his squad of Marines were equipped with suppressed M7's during a raid of Insurrectionist factory in the prologue of the book.
The M7S SMG made its game debut in Halo 2 PC as an easter egg on the Bungie Made Map Example. The map's description is "This is just a small example of what you can do as a Halo 2 cartographer!".